Biotransformation of PFAA Precursors by Oxygenase-Expressing Bacteria in AFFF-Impacted Groundwater and in Pure-Compound Studies with 6:2 FTS and EtFOSEClick to copy article linkArticle link copied!
- Jessica A. LaFondJessica A. LaFondDepartment of Civil, Environmental & Construction Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas 79409, United StatesMore by Jessica A. LaFond
- Rachael RezesRachael RezesBiotechnology Development & Applications Group, APTIM, Lawrenceville, New Jersey 08648, United StatesMore by Rachael Rezes
- Marzieh ShojaeiMarzieh ShojaeiDepartment of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27710, United StatesMore by Marzieh Shojaei
- Todd AndersonTodd AndersonThe Institute of Environmental and Human Health, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas 79409, United StatesMore by Todd Anderson
- W. Andrew Jackson*W. Andrew Jackson*Email: [email protected]Department of Civil, Environmental & Construction Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas 79409, United StatesMore by W. Andrew Jackson
- Jennifer L. GuelfoJennifer L. GuelfoDepartment of Civil, Environmental & Construction Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas 79409, United StatesMore by Jennifer L. Guelfo
- Paul B. HatzingerPaul B. HatzingerBiotechnology Development & Applications Group, APTIM, Lawrenceville, New Jersey 08648, United StatesMore by Paul B. Hatzinger
Abstract
Numerous US drinking water aquifers have been contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from fire-fighting and fire-training activities using aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF). These sites often contain other organic compounds, such as fuel hydrocarbons and methane, which may serve as primary substrates for cometabolic (i.e., nongrowth-linked) biotransformation reactions. This work investigates the abilities of AFFF site relevant bacteria (methanotrophs, propanotrophs, octane, pentane, isobutane, toluene, and ammonia oxidizers), known to express oxygenase enzymes when degrading their primary substrates, to biotransform perfluoroalkyl acid (PFAA) precursors to terminal PFAAs. Microcosms containing AFFF-impacted groundwater, 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (6:2 FTS), or N-ethylperfluorooctane sulfonamidoethanol (EtFOSE) were inoculated with the aerobic cultures above and incubated for 4 and 8 weeks at 22 °C. Bottles were sacrificed, extracted, and subjected to target, nontarget, and suspect screening for PFAS. The PFAA precursors 6:2 FTS, N-sulfopropyldimethyl ammoniopropyl perfluorohexane sulfonamide (SPrAmPr-FHxSA), and EtFOSE transformed up to 99, 71, and 93%, respectively, and relevant daughter products, such as the 6:1 fluorotelomer ketone sulfonate (6:1 FTKS), were identified in quantities previously not observed, implicating oxygenase enzymes. This is the first report of a suite of site relevant PFAA precursors being transformed in AFFF-impacted groundwater by bacteria grown on substrates known to induce specific oxygenase enzymes. The data provide crucial insights into the microbial transformation of these compounds in the subsurface.
Cited By
Smart citations by scite.ai include citation statements extracted from the full text of the citing article. The number of the statements may be higher than the number of citations provided by ACS Publications if one paper cites another multiple times or lower if scite has not yet processed some of the citing articles.
This article is cited by 5 publications.
- Lauren Hendricks, Clorice R. Reinhardt, Tierani Green, Lily Kunczynski, August Jaunzarins Roberts, Naomi Miller, Noga Rafalin, Heather J. Kulik, John T. Groves, Rachel N. Austin. Fontimonas thermophila Alkane Monooxygenase (FtAlkB) Is an Alkyl Fluoride Dehalogenase. Journal of the American Chemical Society 2025, 147
(11)
, 9085-9090. https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.5c00386
- Mohammad Shohel, Nathan R. Bays, Jessica A. LaFond, Samantha M. Kruse, Zoe K. Bryant, Jenna A. Krawchuck, Perla A. Salinas, Jessica K. Román-Kustas, Mark J. Rigali, Andrew W. Knight, Ryan D. Davis, Jessica N. Kruichak. Mesoporous Carbons and their Modification with Aliphatic Quaternary Amines for Adsorption, Thermal Treatment, and Preconcentration of Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA). Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research 2025, 64
(10)
, 5123-5133. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.iecr.4c04024
- Jinha Kim, Scott W. Leonard, Mariann Inga Van Meter, Mitchell L. Kim-Fu, Dunping Cao, Jennifer A. Field, Kung-Hui Chu. Nexus of Soil Microbiomes, Genes, Classes of Carbon Substrates, and Biotransformation of Fluorotelomer-Based Precursors. Environmental Science & Technology 2024, 58
(46)
, 20553-20565. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.4c06471
- Bo Fang, Hao Chen, Maosen Zhao, Biting Qiao, Yue Zhou, Yulong Wang, Yaozhi Zhang, Meng Gao, Yu Wang, Yiming Yao, Hongwen Sun. Biotic and abiotic transformations of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF)-derived emerging polyfluoroalkyl substances in aerobic soil slurry. Water Research 2025, 276 , 123284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2025.123284
- Priyanka Chambial, Neelam Thakur, Jyoti Kushawaha, Rakesh Kumar. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in environment and potential health impacts: Sources, remediation treatment and management, policy guidelines, destructive technologies, and techno-economic analysis. Science of The Total Environment 2025, 969 , 178803. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.178803
Article Views are the COUNTER-compliant sum of full text article downloads since November 2008 (both PDF and HTML) across all institutions and individuals. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days.
Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by Crossref and updated daily. Find more information about Crossref citation counts.
The Altmetric Attention Score is a quantitative measure of the attention that a research article has received online. Clicking on the donut icon will load a page at altmetric.com with additional details about the score and the social media presence for the given article. Find more information on the Altmetric Attention Score and how the score is calculated.